The present invention relates to a method of imaging an object parts of which are substantially further from the imaging system than other parts. The problems arising were initially encountered when photographing buildings where, without correction, the tops of the buildings appear too narrow and foreshortened. However, whilst being of general applicability, the invention has particular applicability to sensing the shape of an object by scansion or projecting onto the object an incident beam the incident radiation, as seen in cross-section normal to the direction of propagation of the radiation, is elongate and thin, whereby the radiation strikes the object along a line; in other words, there is either a stationary beam which is elongate and thin in this section, or there is a scanned beam which sweeps out an area which is elongate and thin in this section. The line is imaged along an axis at a substantial angle to the plane of the incident beam (the plane of the beam is that plane normal to the smallest dimension of the beam). In other words, the shape is detected using a thin sheet of light (a narrow beam), whether continuous or scanned, which is played upon the article; observation off the axis of the beam, i.e. from one side, reveals the profile or contour of the object. The object itself can be rotated with respect to the beam so that the whole of its surface is observed. An imaging system is used to image the points where the beam strikes the article. Such a method is disclosed in GB-A-2 103 355 (equivalent to U.S. Pat. No. 4,529,305). Normally, visible light will be used, but at least in theory other forms of radiation, such as infra-red or ultra-violet, could be used.
The present invention is applicable to any suitable object and any suitable profile, e.g. profile/contour measurement of machine parts--it is especially useful for objects which are different to measure with a micrometer, such as screws, gears, turbine blades and plastic mouldings, and for fragile objects requiring a non-contact method. However, the invention has been developed with respect to gemstones, particularly diamonds, and is especially useful for large stones, e.g. having a weight greater than say 10 ct (2 g), with re-entrant features. The invention can be used to determine the shape of objects which are mounted and rotated.
In general, to obtain an image which geometrically reproduces the object, the objective of the imaging system should be tilted from the normal to the object, and the imaging plane should be tilted with respect to the objective and with respect to the normal to the object. Such an arrangement is known in photography, where tilting bellows are used on a camera, and the Scheimpflug condition specifies the angle of the image plane. There is a problem with this type of imaging. The light enters the imaging system at a large angle of incidence, and much is lost by reflection. Also, due to the constraints of the system, it is difficult to change the magnification (as may be required e.g. to examine more closely a re-entrant feature in a diamond).